On Thursday, Amazon announced it received $600 million in tariff refunds after the Supreme Court ruled that many tariffs imposed by former President Trump were illegal. This ruling mandates the government to reimburse companies that faced tariffs on imported goods.
Amazon's finance chief, Brian Olsavsky, confirmed this amount was received in the second quarter and indicated that the company plans to return some of these funds to customers. Major corporations, including Apple and Walmart, are also seeking similar refunds. Apple reported a 5% increase in earnings per share due to tariff refunds.
Amazon's decision to apply for refunds comes amid scrutiny, as a class action lawsuit was filed by consumers claiming they were owed refunds for inflated prices caused by tariffs. Olsavsky explained that Amazon's limited refund amount is due to its role as a retailer rather than the primary importer for most items sold on its platform.
He noted that over 60% of goods sold on Amazon are from third-party sellers, many of whom raised prices due to tariffs and are now applying for refunds. Amazon will proactively issue refunds to customers in specific cases where it can trace tariff charges passed onto them, while also using the refunds to maintain competitive pricing for its customers